The firm's modern history can be traced to 1935, when J.P.
Morgan & Co. partners Henry S. Morgan (grandson of J.P.
Morgan) and Harold Stanley left the firm to start their own
company: Morgan Stanley. Today, more than 75 years later,
Morgan Stanley is known as one of the leading investment banks in
the world. It has one of the top financial advisor sales
forces on the planet (its retail advisors operate under the Morgan
Stanley Smith Barney name). And it regularly works on the most
high-profile deals on Wall Street.

For the first six months of 2014, the firm ranked No. 2 in
worldwide announced M&A deal volume, as well as in U.S.
announced M&A deal volume. For the same period, it ranked No. 3
in global IPO underwriting and No. 2 in U.S. IPO underwriting. The
bank is led by James Gorman, its chairman and CEO. It employs
nearly 56,000 employees globally.